Tuesday, June 16, 2009

This week we have received official confirmation that our nominated projects for the Commonwealth Government’s Building the Education Revolution program have been approved. This is fantastic news for our school, with construction to begin very shortly on the following projects:

·A hall – this will be built in the back playground adjacent to the PreSchool. It will have a stage, toilets, showers and storage facilities, as well as an adjacent Covered Outdoor Learning Area. This will be a terrific addition to our school and will allow us to have the whole school indoors for assemblies and performances etc. It will also provide a rehearsal and concert venue for the school band and other groups. Whilst it will not be huge, it will certainly be big enough for our entire school to use. Importantly, it will not encroach on our athletics track or any of our sporting areas in the back playground. Whilst this news is exciting, the second project as part of this funding we are sure will really excite our students, (and will be a major asset to our school). This will be the construction of a….

·Multi-sports tennis, basketball, netball and volleyball court – this sporting facility will be built in the existing staff car park (bad luck teachers!) and will be an all-weather surface with a surrounding fence. It means we will have our own court for these sports, as well as an adjoining area with handball and hopscotch markings etc. This is really exciting news and will ensure that Narrabri West will have without a doubt the best facilities of any school, not only in Narrabri, but in the entire New England area. How lucky are our students? The court will be similar to the one in the photo.

These projects will certainly enhance our school and we are looking forward to watching their progress as they take shape. These are exciting times for Narrabri West!

Thursday, June 11, 2009

On Wednesday June 3rd, eight people went to Tamworth Public School to learn how to debate. Josie Wilson, Alix Sills, Kiara Harvey, Jane Phillips, Taylah Cook, Jess O’Neil, April Squire and Felicity Elford all had a great day learning about the 3 m’s - Matter, Manner and Method. We all started off by learning to debate and wrote down dot points, sentences and tables. The instructors told us about how to set up a debate, how to use speakers to present arguments and how to rebut the oppositions arguments. We had to see what would we do if we ruled the world , and lots more. We also got a chance to debate and it was fantastic! The instructors were really nice too and if we got stuck they would help us. We all had a great day and our school will definitely go next year.

Those people above represented our school extremely well and they had wonderful manners too. They were also pleasant to the other runners and the organisers. As excellent role models, they cheered our school on when they were running. The next level is Coolah - We wish them luck!

3/4W has planted some winter vegetables such as: Broccoli, Cabbage, Peas sillver Beet and Brussel Sprouts in large, plastic pots outside our classroom in front of our balcony where they receive lots of sun. The seedlings took 7-10 days to germinate. 3/4W worked in groups of 4 or 5 planting a vegetable. They get watered once a week by chosen people to keep them up and running. They have really taken off! 3/4W are very proud of their plants and are having loads of fun with them!!!

The Knitting Club is off to a great start this year with 20 keen knitters showing up on Wednesday, armed with brightly coloured wool and needles, ready to create beautiful knitted masterpieces! It is great to see many students returning this year after learning to knit in 2008 and these students are proving to be excellent helpers, assisting some of the new knitters this year. Ms Dafter has been assisted by Mrs Phillips who also shares a love of knitting, and they have sure been busy casting on and teaching basic knitting techniques to everyone. The children, from Years 3-6, are a very enthusiastic bunch and are planning to make nice warm scarves for Winter as well as little bags and purses. The group will meet every Wednesday at lunchtime in Ms Dafter’s classroom during the colder months. All knitters are welcome, but our spare needles have run out so be sure to bring along some of your own!

Monday, June 1, 2009

Narrabri West Public School has won the 2009 New England Education Region Award for Excellence in the Arts. This year a total of nineteen ‘Excellence in Education’ awards were announced by Relieving Regional Director Mr Jim White in Education Week. These awards recognise excellence within a school.

Narrabri West’s Excellence in the Arts Award was judged on criteria which included:

exemplary professional practices in one or more of the art forms of music, dance, visual arts, drama;

an excellent record of developing opportunities for participation by students in school, regional and state events; and

exemplary practices in encouraging students to develop their talents in one or more art forms.

All nominations were judged by a panel that included the Regional Director of Education, a Principal representative, a Teacher representative and a P & C representative.

The judging panel determined that all areas of Narrabri West’s performing arts program were the most outstanding examples of ‘best practice’ within the New England Region. The judges acknowledged in the award citation that music is an integral part of the school’s curriculum, with students experiencing a sequenced program which also allows those with a particular interest or aptitude to receive specialised instruction and further develop their talents. Special mention was made of the schools concert band program, sequenced instruction program for teaching all student s the recorder and the percussion (drumming) program. They also acknowledged how the school music program impacts not only on the school, but also the whole community, with many students going on to join Narrabri High School music programs and also the Narrabri Shire Band.

This is the fourth major award that Narrabri West has won in the last two years, which is indicative of the high quality educational programs that we have implemented. The real winners of course are the children attending Narrabri West, who get to benefit from the impact of these award winning programs.